The travels, musings and thoughts of a man and his camera.

Down The River Clyde.

Just to show a proper balance and respect to my Scottish heritage, not only do I go to Edinburgh, I also travel to Glasgow. The routine is generally the same, unless I am staying in Scotland I make a day of it and use the early train up to Glasgow to give me a full day out there. Again like the Edinburgh trips once I’m on the train it’s a case of sit back and let the journey roll past my carriage window.

SCOTLAND, Glasgow. The Central Station clock.

Glasgow Central is another confident statement of the railway age, this clock hangs down over the concourse from the arching, overall roof. While some may say that Glasgow lacks Edinburgh’s elegance it is still a city with many attractions. The reason for my most recent visit was the newly opened Riverside Museum, down on the River Clyde at Partick, an easy train of subway ride from Central station. An image of it headlines this post. It replaced the former Transport Museum which was located near to the Kelvingrove Museum. The new premises were designed by the architect Zaha Hadid, the flowing roofline taking it’s inspiration from the flowing of the river. I never visited the old museum, it was on my to do list but was outfoxed by time ( note to self, GET ORGANISED!), so I’m not in a position to make any comparisons. The Riverside doesn’t lack exhibits from personal items up to full sized locomotives, plus outside a sailing ship is moored. One wall is covered with a selection of motorcars of yesteryear, or if public transport is to your interest you can explore some of Glasgow’s trams or sit in one of the original Glasgow subway tramcars. I’ve travelled on one of these ( NO I’m not that old, they were in service for a very, very long time).

SCOTLAND, Glasgow. The interior of the new Riverside Museum on the River Clyde at Partick. Glasgow tram 672 on its way to Springburn.

Glasgow benefits from having good transport links and a selection of tickets that cover bus, rail and the subway. The subway is a fantastic way to get around the city. Originally it was rope hauled but electrified at the beginning of the 20th century, you can’t get lost on it. It is made up of two circles one inside the other, running clockwise & anti clockwise around the city, so if you miss your station, stay on you will come back to it eventually. I had actually started my look around Glasgow with a walk out from Central Station to Glasgow Green and a Look at the Peoples’ Palace, another museum, this time concentrating on the story of the people of Glasgow, it opened in 1898 as a Reading Room and art gallery. Outside is the Doulton Fountain, presented to the city as part of the International Exhibition of 1888

SCOTLAND, Glasgow. A close up of one of the groups of figures representing parts of the Empire. This is Canada.

It celebrates the height & might of Queen Victoria’s empire with groups of figures representing the various peoples, this couple are Canada. From the Palace is was a short walk to Bridgeton where I caught a train on the subsurface routes under the city centreto Partick and the Riverside.

A grimmer, but in it’s way breathtaking, location, I won’t call it a tourist attraction, it’s the Necropolis.

SCOTLAND, Glasgow. A view towards the highest point of the Necropolis and the memorial to John Knox.

The Necropolis is sited on a hill overlooking the City and the Cathedral of St. Mungo and is a place where death has been accessorised with a magnificent array of tombs and memorials, built by the merchants and businessmen to celebrate their wealth and place in Glasgow society.

If you are going to be guarded throughout eternity by Angels, better make them large ones. It was on one trip[ around Glasgow that I was working my way back to Central station as the evening’s light gathered in that I thought I could hear a guitar in the distance, lots of long chords, reverb and feedback, I was right. On the Corner of Gordon Street, just shy of the station I encountered this guy.

He was blissfully happy making the last of the evening ring with guitar and amp. I did ask if it was okay for me to take this shot but he was in another place and very happy with his music. So a quick press of the shutter button and I was on my way back to the station and the train home.

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UK resident, in north west Lancashire. It was time for a career change and a lifelong interest in photography has opened up a new path with new challenges. As well as submissions to photo libraries and magazines I'm also putting together a selection of e-book titles through Amazon Kindle.